Ethics in Corporate America

Ethics in Corporate America is on the Decline

Marist College Institute for Public Opinion survey

76% of Americans believed Corporate America’s moral compass is pointed in the wrong direction.

58% of business leaders agreed

Ethical Standards that are Declining

Overall honesty and ethical conduct are becoming scarce:

52% Americans 24% Business leaders

Lack of leadership in a time of crisis: 58% Americans 19% Business leaders

Ethical StandardsGreece vs. America

Used false information to get into the European Union

Misallocated funds from bail-out, now need more money

Manipulated the European Union’s system

Ford Motor Company Workplace

safety/human rights Small environmental

impact Acts in best interest of

the company Concerned with impact

of the rest of the world

The P.I.I.G.S

Insecurity of Greek Market

Deficit of GDP and Debt

Ford: A Family Tradition “There is a most intimate

connection between decency and good business.”

“I believe the distinction between a good company and a great company is this: a good company delivers excellent products and services; a great one delivers excellent products and services and strives to make the world a better place.”

Ethical dilemma: The Ford Pinto 

Ford did a cost-benefit analysis and decided that the cost of fixing all Pintos on the road (about $11 each) would result in higher overall costs compared to paying damages to people injured or killed in car fires, which it estimated to be about $270,000 each

Built Ford Tough

Adopted a code guarantees that the directors act in the best interest of the company, and its customers.

Has a Model “U” concept car that is made completely of biomaterials

Maintaining Ethical Practices are Crucial to Effective Businesses

Higher employee retention ratePromotion from withinRepeat business due to a more skilled staffMicrosoft becoming more ethicalFacebook and Apple as unethical companies

Ethics from the Siren’s Eyes

Starbucks From the farm to the

store, ethical practices are maintained

Exhibits social responsibility

Exhibits environmental responsibility

Keeping Americans employed in a time of crisis

Ethical Companies are Thriving

Gap eBay Patagonia Microsoft Xerox Caterpillar

PepsiCo General Mills Waste Management T-Mobile USA UPS Target

Conclusion

There are many examples of decent ethical behavior in Corporate America

76% of Americans have a skewed perception of business’s moral compass